You all have
A little bit of
"I want to save the world!"
In you

I just want you to know
That it's ok
If you only save
One person
And it's okay
If that person
Is you

Everyone's breaking off their pieces,                                                          ­                                                                 ­                                                                 ­      
                                                                ­                                              
  leaving me broken & so empty                                                            ­            
                                                    ­                                                                 ­   
As long as they fulfill their needs                                                            ­        
                                                        ­                                                                
in the end who cares who bleeds?                                                          ­                  
                                              ­                                                                
­Tugging on the scraps of what's left                                                             ­                                 
                               ­                                                                 ­                
pulling at the heart in my chest                                                            ­              
                                                  ­                                                              
They get their fill they leave the rest                                                        
                                                                ­                                                
finally feeling sated, I clean up their mess                                                          
  ­                                                                 ­                                                   
I thought that what I gave to them                                                             ­           
                                                     ­                                                       
would be returned to me in the end                                                              ­                      
                                                                ­                                          
Leaving me sick with my confusion                                                        ­            
                                                                ­                                                    
all I am is & disillusioned                                                    ­                              
                                                                ­                                              
Never give your love away
 you may need it yourself, someday

I remember the time in summer camp
when we could either go swimming or paint.
Despite how much I loved to paint,
I followed my crush to the pool,
thinking my bared skin might catch his attention.
I watched as he jumped in the water,
played football, and wrestled with his friend.
He had made no compromise,
didn't change his plans because I was there.
I remember coming back to the cabin
where my friends stood with their acrylics.
Where along the line did I learn
to abandon myself for merely the possibility
of male attention, approval, appreciation?
How early was it cemented in my brain
that I am just an object to be admired
and should try at every given moment
to put myself in someone's line of view?
When did it first happen,
and how long will it take me to deconstruct,
to decentralize this gnawing belief
that I am nothing if I'm not perceived?

Let me make one thing clear today,
Like the lion’s roar at the break of day.
If my worth you fail to see,
then like the wind, you drift from me.
Loyalty is strong, like ancient stone,
and those who stray must walk alone.

People come and people go,
like rivers where the wild reeds grow.
But if you stand, then stand with pride,
like mighty baobabs side by side.
Respect is not a gift, but earned,
like coal from the wood when burned.

I do not chase, I do not plead,
my heart is not a thing of need.
If you walk, then go your way,
no words will beg for you to stay.
The ones who matter, firm remain,
like endless stars in the night’s domain.

A stranger you will be to me,
like lost footprints washed to sea.
Deceit is but a fleeting shade,
exposed beneath the sun’s cruel blade.
Respect is deep, like mountain roots,
and falsehood bears no lasting fruits.

I do not play the games of those,
who shift like winds where no one knows.
I stand with those whose hearts are true,
whose souls shine bright like morning dew.
Like warriors bound by blood and trust,
I walk with strength, I rise from dust.

So if you’re here, then stand with grace,
this path we walk is not a race.
It’s not a right to walk beside,
but earned with truth and worn with pride.
I give my love to those who see,
that worth is built on loyalty.

You’re no toy
to be played with
You’re no tool
To be used
You’re of value
The prize to be cherished
The woman to be love
Know your worth
Know you’re deserving
Not only of love, but of trust
Stay with me, leave me
Either choice please remember
Remember the love I’ve given
Remember the manner I cherish
Remember so that all other to come
Love as I loved
Cherished as I’ve cherished
Know this or more is your worth

Worth anything?
It’s killing me
Worth anything?
No, that can’t be.

My failures and mistakes
make up who I am.
So when you tell me that it’s okay
What am I supposed to say to that?

I have never been one to know my worth—
always measuring myself in fractions,
always finding less than whole.
But meeting you took “less”
and carved it down to nothing.

You made me feel unlovable,
a ghost in the room, a shadow at your feet.
Time and time again, you chose everyone else,
and time and time again,
I let you.
I let you because I thought I deserved nothing more.

You kept me on your own timeline,
offering crumbs, never a feast,
and I swallowed every excuse
because I thought even scraps
were something close to love.

“You shouldn’t have told her—
you probably ruined her night.”
But no, she didn’t.
You did.
You ruined my nights, my hope, my peace,
but I let you, didn’t I?
I let you every time I forgave,
every time I made excuses,
every time I prayed you’d change
only to watch you stay exactly the same.

And then—just when I swore
I could take no more—
you held my hand.
For the first time.
For the first time, your skin met mine,
and I let myself believe.

I lay beside you,
my fingers mapping the ridges of your spine,
my lips pressing against your cheek,
the scent of sunscreen tangled in your hair.
I finally heard it from your own mouth,
not from whispers, not from hopeful hearts
“I like you.”
“If things were easier, I’d pursue you.”
And I believed you.

But a week is all it took
for you to pretend none of it happened.
The slow replies.
The canceled plans.
The empty air where effort should have been.
Before, I would have smiled, said it was fine,
but now that I have felt your skin—
it is not fine.
It will never be fine again.

I told myself I wouldn’t cry over a man.
I made myself busy.
I swallowed the sadness,
tried to turn it to anger,
but anger was never strong enough
to silence the truth.

I did not weep for you.
I wept for myself.
For the girl who lost her respect,
who let herself be made so small
she forgot how to stand.

But I am standing now.
And I am not unlovable.
I deserve more than the empty space you left behind.
I would have given you the world—
and you wouldn’t have even given me dinner.

No more.
No more waiting.
No more hoping.
No more settling for less than what I deserve.
I am learning my worth.
And this time, I will not forget it.